This invention relates to faucet sprayer hoses, and more particularly to an aftermarket product for use with kitchen and lavatory faucets.
The installation and use of faucets with retractable spray assemblies has become widespread. Old designs of faucets however rarely implement the retractable spray assemblies thus offering the aftermarket suppliers an unlimited field for replacement of stationary assemblies with the retractable assemblies. In addition, even modern retractable assemblies wear out in a relatively short period of time and need to be replaced as well.
The design and use of faucets having retractable spray assemblies is well known. Typically, a hand-held spray head of such assembly is positioned in the outlet of the tap fitting whereby the hand-held spray head when in an inserted position can be used as stationary outlet and by removal from the outlet can be used as a hand-held spray for dish washing. A typical hand-held spray head is connected to a water supply outlet by means of a hose extending between the water supply outlet and a discharge end of a spout.
An access to old plumbing fixtures and particularly to kitchen water supply outlets is not easy and is usually time consuming even for a professional plumber. The following few examples of the known retractable assemblies represent rather a typical replacement hose kit and problems encountered during its installation.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,546,978 to Parker discloses a replacement faucet hose installation kit including a flexible hose segment connected to an outlet port and extending through the entire water-conveying conduit to be attached to a hand-held spray head. Installation of such assembly requires disassembling of a faucet unit in order to provide access to the outlet port hidden under a sink.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,827,538 to Heimann discloses a retractable hose assembly, wherein a flexible hose extends through a spout and has its inlet end biased inwardly by a weight. Installation of this assembly is also difficult primarily because the inlet end of the hose extends through the entire inner conduit leading to a wall water pipe.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,822,811 discloses an extensible faucet assembly having a hose extending through the entire assembly and connected to a mixing valve which is mounted upstream from the assembly. Similarly to the above-discussed structures, replacement and installation of a retractable hose assembly is time consuming.
It is, therefore, desirable to provide a retractable hose assembly kit which can be easily attached to existing faucet assemblies. Also desirable is a retractable hose assembly kit attachable to a discharge opening of a faucet assembly and having a hose which is sized and shaped to convey water toward a hand-held spray head as the hose""s inlet end freely travels along an inner conduit. A retractable hose assembly kit having a locking mechanism adapted to lock the hand-held spray head in a retracted position of the hose assembly is also desirable.
A kit which is comprised of a connector matable with a discharge opening of an existing spout and providing a guide for a flexible hose, a proximal end of which is connected to a hand-held spray head and a distal free end is inserted into an inner conduit meets all of the above requirements.
In accordance with one aspect of the invention, the free end of the hose is freely displaceable inside the conveying conduit upon applying an external force to the spray head in order to displace the latter between extended and retracted positions.
The free end of the hose has a guide assembly which includes a positioning seat having a central channel which is sized to allow the hose to slide through the seat in such a manner that inner and outer surfaces of the channel and hose, respectively, provide a water seal during displacement of the hose. As a consequence, the hose delivers water to a discharging opening of the spray head in the extended position of the latter.
The positioning seat is so shaped that its outer surface is sealingly pressed against an inner peripheral wall of a connector which serves to attach the entire hose assembly to a discharging opening of the spout. This, a size and shape of the connector, positioning seat and the hose are selected to allow water to flow only through the hose, eliminating thereby a need for direct attachment of an inlet end of the hose to a mixing barrel or a wall pipe.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the proximal end of the hose can be locked in the connector to position the spray head in its retracted position by means of a locking assembly. The locking assembly prevents displacement of the hose relative to the connector and includes a locking flange which is received in a nest formed between a bottom of the connector and a bottom of the positioning seat. Due to the unattached free end of the hose which is rotatably fixed with locking flange, the latter rotates about an axis between a position wherein axial displacement of the hose is arrested and a position wherein the hose and the flange move axially.
The retractable hose assembly may be just a few inches long because the hose is unattached to a water inlet and easily installed by mating the connector with a discharge opening of the spout as the hose is inserted into the inner conduit of the faucet assembly.
It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a kit including a retractable hose assembly which is easy to install in a faucet assembly.
Sill another object of the invention is to provide a retractable hose assembly that does not need direct attachment of the hose to an water inlet.
Yet another object of the invention is t provide a hose assembly which has a water proof structure allowing water flow only through the hose as a spray head is displaceable between its retracted and extended positions.
It is a further object of the invention provide a locking assembly for arresting further displacement of the spray head in its retracted position.
The above and other objects, features and advantages will become more readily apparent from the detailed description of the preferred embodiment of the invention accompanied by the following drawings, in which: